Threes
by Seoinage
Summary: Three sides of two triangles face each other over the carnage of their past. Spoilers up through manga chapter 249 and anime episode 123. [COMPLETE]


This is my first foray into the world of fanfiction.

Author notes are at the end. (My anonymous 1st reviewer, please take a look!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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The protégé of one of the Legendary Three of Konoha trained constantly for two and a half years. Excellent chakra control became the ability to summon raw strength, further harnessed and fine tuned to either heal or hurt. Emerald gaze focused on her goals for the future, an adolescent in first bloom.

Two and a half years of sweat.

Two and a half years of blood.

Two and a half years of tears.

The protégé of the white haired Legendary Three also trained constantly during this time, the passage marked by his increasing stamina, strength, jutsu, height, and ability to strategize. His bright blue eyes took in everything around him, hope burning strong along with the promise of a lifetime yet to be fulfilled.

Two and a half years of sweat.

Two and a half years of blood.

Two and a half years of tears.

The protégé of the third Legendary Three trained with a single minded purpose ever since fleeing to the promise of power, no matter how darkly stained. All seeing blood red eyes with their swirls of black became blinded to the violence and mayhem around him and in him. Sacrificing himself in the hopes of chasing down his past, severing ties while still bound by one.

Two and a half years of sweat.

Two and a half years of blood.

Two and a half years of tears.

Then one day the three protégés clashed; two against one, even as their older counterparts collided in a shockwave further away.

Two shinobi fought to bring back their lost teammate while the other shinobi lashed back against the shackles of his past.

Two full of regret wrestled against their past while the other shinobi struggled for his imagined perfect future at the cost of everything.

Resolution stiffened them all, the displays of raw power and determination frightful.

Three youthful faces with old eyes locked as hands formed seals and mouths grimly moved to utilize the genjutsu and ninjutsu they trained so hard at. Hands, arms, feet and legs locked in combat, taijutsu used to its fullest. Blows rained down amidst smoke bombs and kunai unleashed.

Earth around them shifted and deformed; fissures and deep holes forming. Noise from the battles deafened the area even as more blasts erupted.

Further away, three faces of indeterminate ages, all with steely calculating eyes, stared across at each other over the distance formed by their summoned creatures. Each was a point of a triangle.

The blonde made a striking figure with her feet firmly planted atop the slug, arms crossed, blue sky the backdrop. Her brunette attendant stood next to her. Narrowed blue eyes let nothing slip, but her hand coming up to finger a necklace no longer around her neck gave her away.

The dark haired man stood in a relaxed manner atop the snake, arms at his sides. A smirk lingered on to irk the other two, confidently superior in his false body and broken hands. In a defensive position a few steps in front of his master, the attendant guarded.

Only the white haired man stood atop the toad alone, having never taken on an attendant. An embodiment of strength on the surface, arms crossed over his chest, long hair waved in the breeze as his geta-clad feet dug down on his companion's back. Though impassive, mental thoughts ran gamut. His arms tightened slightly and he wished he could see her better than just out the corner of his eye.

The inevitable clashing of these titans came to a head. A collision two had run away from hoping never to have to be a part of it. A collision perhaps not so inevitable if a past Hokage had not looked upon his student, then looked away.

In the end, it _was_ inevitable. There was no hiding the truth that two who stood before the third had run away countless times until years and then decades passed. There was no denying that a deceased Hokage had looked away to allow a student's escape from Konoha, giving in to the emotions of his heart. Hope always did die a terrible death.

In the end, they were all human, even if they were human tools.

Tears streamed down the marked, dirty and bloody cheeks of the spiky blond. In his helpless arms were tenderly cradled the two people who meant the most to him in the world. His best friends, people who would never open their eyes again. Sweat, blood and tears mingled as the promise of a lifetime broke in thirds.

At the center of another crater, a hand familiar with bloodshed and cruelty came in contact of the fallen figure who was once a would-be savior. On the other side, a rough hand suited to holding a brush or a spyglass reached up and touched the feminine hand near him, now lifeless.

Two pairs of eyes, the owners of those faint movements, met one last time over her still body and then all closed in final sleep.

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A/N: When Jiraiya took Naruto on as a student, I became fascinated by the parallels I could see form between the Sannin and Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. That is one of the reasons why I wasn't surprised by Sasuke heading off to Orochimaru.

Blood Orochimaru & Sasuke

Sweat Jiraiya & Naruto

Tears Tsunade & Sakura

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To the anonymous reviewer who left me my first R&R, I'm sorry that when I fixed _Threes_ that your review got erased! Thank you for reading and leaving me a comment as to why you enjoyed it. Writing _Threes_ was delightful for me; the idea and structure being captured on paper almost by itself. I am very happy with the way this turned out!

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R&R's appreciated. Thanks for dropping in. 


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